CGiii Rating

Public Rating

CGiii Comment

Take an old story - Cyrano de Bergerac - and, inject it with vim and vigour! That's what Alice Wu has just done! And...we - collectively - applaud you.

The issues are [surprisingly] complex...but, the touch is light. Nothing is heavy-handed...and, beautifully, lands quite a few unexpected punches. Everything about The Half of It is carefully planned and the beauty about it is...it shows. There's a little bit of this...blossoming teen sexuality and the aftershock of grief. There's a little bit of a philosophical that...Satre & Camus: What? In a teen rom-com!?! There's putrid racism, toxic masculinity and breath-taking, indefatigable masculine gentility...Paul is a boy you would want as a friend.

It is a love story...of sorts, with a schoolboy crush and a schoolgirl's yearning...for the same girl. It does end in tears...but, are they happy or sad tears? With a fantastically deployed leitmotif...a notoriously difficult mechanism to get right...well, Alice Wu nails it...with a precision that will make you simply gasp. Here's a director who understands the 'moment' when nothing needs to be said and the picture says it all.

The Half of It is all about charm...with a razor-sharp edge. This is teen rom-com like you have never seen before. It's intelligent, it has artistry [by the bucket-load]...even the soundtrack is inspired...and, the cinematography has to be applauded.

Three stars of the future have been created...Alice Wu, Leah Lewis and Daniel Diemer. A film that really shows the true magic of film.

All we can say is...a great big...THANK YOU.

Trailer...

The(ir) Blurb...

A shy, introverted, Chinese-American, straight-A student finds herself helping the school jock woo the girl they both secretly love. In the process, each teaches the other about the nature of love as they find connection in the most unlikely of places.